Sash balance connector



May 28, 1957 A. R. LARsoN 2,793,389

sAsH BALANCE CONNECTOR Filed Feb. 2s, 1955 INVENTOR. AALVIN R. LARSONATTORNEYS.

2,793,389 .sAsH BALANCE CONNECTOR lvin R. Larson, Stamford, Conn.,assignor to Unique Balance Co., Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation ofIllinois Appunti Februaryzs, 195s, serialNo. 490,052

6 Claims. (Cl. 16-197) This invention relates to'connectors for securingspring sash balances to window sashes and, more specifically, to animproved connector by means of which the movable portion of springbalances of the spiral type may be effectively joined to window sash.

Spring balances of the spiralrod type, such as disclosed in the PatentsNos. .1,926,951 and 2,041,646 to Larson, must be secured atv one Aend toa window jamb and at the lother end to sash carried in the jamb by thebalances. In one type of spiral sash balance, a drive screw or the likefastens the spiral rod to the jamb and in this instance, the torsionspring must be secured by suitable structure to the Sash. Normally, thespiral rod in this type of balance extends below thestructure employedto connect it to the sash.

Formerly, the structure joining the balance to the sash has been in theform of a connector comprising a strip pivoted on a collar formed forattachment to a member joined to the torsion spring. In order to insertthe balance in a sash groove adjacent to'V the jamb, the connector stripwas pivoted to orient it parallel to the balance and the balance securedto the jamb. Subsequently, it

was necessary to secure the connector tothe sash and in order toaccomplish this function, the connector required a heavy forcetodisplace it downwardly a substantial distance so that it could bepivoted without interference from the spiral rod. This was a diicult anddangerous operation, particularly when heavy sashes-Were involved whichnecessitated the use of a tension spring in the balance in addition tothe torsion spring, because the pull that had to be exerted on theconnector equaled one-half the weight of the sash. To exert thisforce ina limited and inconvenient Working area in order to displace theconnector while supoprting the heavy sash raise many problems in theinstallation of such sash.

Accordingly, it is an object of -the present invention to provideanimproved connector for effectively and'con- Veniently securing a sashbalance to a sash.

AItis another object of the inventionA to provide a sash connectorhaving" themabove `characteristics which vmay be secured to sash havingany desired configuration at the point of attachment.

These and further objects of the invention are accomplished by providinga sash connector comprising a flexible strip adapted to be mounted bysuitable structure on an extensible member joined .to a movable portionof a sash balance. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, alocating tab is formed on the strip. In addition, suitable apertures andwood holding prongs are provided on the flexible strip for securing itto a sash.

These vand further objects and advantages of the invention will be morereadily understood when the following description is read in connectionwith the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is an elevation, partially broken away, of a mounted springsash balance of the spiral rod type joined y .2,196,389 Patented May 2s,1,957

ice

2 to a sash by a connector constructed in accordance with the principlesof the present invention;

Figure 2 is `a transverse section of the elevationillustrated in Figurel taken on the View line ZZ looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 3A is a fragmentary elevation, partially broken away,illustrating a modified sash connector in accordance with the presentinvention; f

Figure 3B is a fragmentary elevation, similar to Figure 3A but showingthe sash in greater detail, illustrating the manner in which themodifieds'ash connector maybe secured to a sash having'an unusualconfiguration; Figure 4 is a transverse section of the flexible strip ofFigure 3A taken on the view line 4'4 looking in the direction of thearrows; and l Figure 5 is another transverse lsection of the flexiblestrip and a portion of the sash of Figure 3B takenon the view line 4 4looking in the direction of the arrows.

Referring to an illustrative embodiment of the .present invention ingreater detail with particular reference to Figures v1 and 2, a spiralsash balance 10 is secured by a drive screw 11 and a stand-off collar11a to a window jamb 12 in a groove 13a of a sash 13. A tube 14, piercedat its upper end by an eyelet 15, encloses the remaining elements of thebalance 10 when it is retracted. A loop 16, constituting the upper endof an extensible coil spring 17, is supported by the eyelet 15 whileaspiral rod 18, bent back on itself to form a loop 19, is secured to theupper end of the spring 17. A` stop rivet 20, pro- Y vided on the lowerend of the spiral rod 18, prevents its' disengagement with aconventional following nut (not shown) attached to the upper end of atorsion spring 2 1.

A generally cylindrical member 2,2, securely fastened to the lower endsof both the torsion spring 21 and the tension spring 17, has formed onits lower edge an annular'collar 23, best shown in Figure 2, carrying apair of upwardly extending ratchet elements 24. v V

In order to operatively join the spring carrying member 22 to the sash13, a connector 25 is adapted to be fastened to both of these elements.vcomprises an outer split collarV 26, preferably integral with a flexiblestrip 27 carrying on its opposite sides a pair of wood holdingtriangular vprongs 27a extending substantially perpendicularlyfrom thesurface of the strip and each of them formed with `a slight curl, asShown in Figure 4. The prongs V27a .are preferably canted toward thefree end of the strip 27. The .stripV 27 is completed by a plurality ofapertures 28 receiving screws 28a. is a ring 29 carrying ratchetelements 30 on its lower edge which :cooperate with the ratchet elements24 to maintain the tension of the torsion spring 21.

The strip 27 is sufficiently. flexible so that it may be.

bent to conform to the'shape of the lower edge of the sash 13. Forexample, it may be formed of metal such as a relatively soft steel. Theflexibility `of the strip 27 is clearly shown in Figure 3B in which asash 13', similar in other respects to the structure illustrated inFigure l, is provided with a horn-like lower portion 31 both tostrengthen lthe sash and improve its appearance.

Referring more specifically to Figures 3A and 3B, the flexible strip 27carries a locating tab 27b at its upper end extending toward the sash13'. The tab 27b may be formed in any desired manner such as, forexample, by punching it from the strip 27. Since the flexible strip 27may be bent to conform to the configuration of the portion 31, it isunnecessary to employ a special connector as was often the case prior tothis invention.

Examining the manner in which the connector i1lustrated in Figure 1 maybe employed, initially the strip 27 extends downwardly as shown by thebroken lines in The connector 25` Secured to the inner surface ofthesplit collar 26 y Figures 1 and 3 to permit the insertion of thebalance 10 intothe groove 13a provided on the sash 13. After securingthe balance to the jamb 12 by the screw 11, the sash 13 is raised to itsuppermost position and the strip 27 bent toengageitstlowen edge. Thisoperation serves to-hold the sash 13 in position when. the strip 27. is`formed of a sufficiently. strong material, a preferable construction.Next, the prongs27zz may. be driven into the sash 13 and due to theirforward cant, they will have a tendency to pull the connector. 2-5downwardlyv in the groove 13a. This results in the slight separationy ofthe connector 25 and the tube 14 shown in Figure 1. In addition, thecurl ofthe prongs 27rwillcause them to bend and clinch the wood, asshown in Figure 5, to. securely fasten the strip 27 tothe sash 13. ThisfreesbothY hands for the insertion of the screws 28a. through theapertures 2S into the sash, 13.

In certain. instances, it is desirable to prestress the balance 10 inorder to eliminate any possibility` that the sash 13' will sag from itshighest, position. This is achieved by using the connector shown inFigures 3A and 3B, the balance 10 and the sash 13 initially beingpositioned as shown in Figure 3A. In order to fasten the connector 25 tothe sash 13', it is displaced downwardly a short distance sufficient tohook the cab 27b under the lower edge of thesash 13', this actionstressing the balance 10. It will be evident that the position of thetab 27h on the strip 27 determines the degree of extension of thebalance 10 so that prestressing is effectively limited, measured andcontrolled. When the exible strip 27 is subsequently bent to conform tothe lower edge of the sash 13 (Figure 3B), the tab 27b is received inthe opening from which it was initially punched. Since the balance 10will be under stress when the sash 13' is at its highest position, sashsagging will be effectively precluded with this arrangement.

It is evident that the above-described methods of fastening the balance10 to the sashes 13 and 13 are both simple and safe. It provides manyadvantages over the former fastening methods in which the connectorcomprised a pivoted strip extending on the other side of the spiral rod1S. Asv mentioned above, such an arrangement necessitated `the extensionof the balance until such strip was below the spiral rod, pivoting it toengage the sash and then fastening it to the sash, a difficult anddangerous operation obviated by the present sash connector.

It-will be apparent that while the present invention is particularlyapplicable to spring balances used with heavy sash, it may be employedwith other spring balances in order to simplify `their attachment tosashes. Furthermore, while ratchet elements are employed to couple thetypical embodiment of the sash connector described above to the springbalance, it will be apparent that other modes of coupling such as arigid connection may be used to r secure the connector to the balance.Moreover, it will be understood that the above-described embodiments ofthe invention are illustrativeonly and modifications thereof will occurto those skilled in the art. Therefore, the invention is not to belimited to the specific apparatus disclosed herein but is to be definedby the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A sash balance connector for spring balances of a spiral rod type inwhich the spiral rod normally extends below a movable element ofthevbalance, said connector comprising an end portion adapted to bejoined to the movable element, a flexible strip joined Ito the endportion and normally extending in the direction of movement of themovable element between the sash edge and the extending spiral rod, thefiexible strip adapted to be bent to engage and conform to the loweredge of the sash, and means on the strip for securing-it to the sash,

2. A device as defined inl claim 1 in which a locating tab adapted to behooked under the lower edge of the sash extends substantiallyperpendicularly from the end of the flexible strip joined to the endportion,

3. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein said securing means includes apair of forwardly canted laterally curled prongs extending substantiallyperpendicularly from the surface of the strip, said prongs adapted to bedriven into the lower edge of the sash.

4. A sash balance connector for spring balances of a spiral rod type inwhichv the spiral rod normally extends below a. movable element of thebalance, said connector comprising a cylindrical portion with rstratchet means adapted to be joined to the movable element havingcooperating second ratchet means, a exible metal strip joined to thecylindrical portion and normally extending in the direction of movementof the movable element between the sash edge and the extending spiralrod, the fiexible strip adapted to be bent to engage and conform to thelower edge of the sash, and means on the strip for securing it to thesash.

5. A device as defined in claim 4 in which a locating tab adapted to behooked under the lower edge of the sash extends substantiallyperpendicularly from the end of the exible strip joined to thecylindrical portion.

6. A device as defined in claim 4 wherein said securing means includes apair of forwardly canted laterally curled prongs extending substantiallyperpendicularly from the surface of the strip, said prongs adapted to bedriveninto the lower edge of the sash.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,383,701 Ellis July 5, 1921 1,909,698 Madsen May 16, 1933 2,307,547Starck Jan. 5, 1943 2,329,463 Froelich Sept. 14, 1943 2,580,705 TappanJan. 1, 1952 2,603,827 Brown July 22, 1952 2,633,600 Larson Apr. 7, 1953FOREIGN PATENTS 1,047,390 France July 22, 1953

